Only In The Netherlands

I’m thinking of re-titling this entire blog ONLY IN THE NETHERLANDS – although I think that blog might actually already exist.

Every country has its little peccadilloes. I’ve remarked numerous times how hardy and weather-resistant the Dutch are. So, when you have an almost unbroken 130 km stretch of North sea coast, why not invent an annual autumnal mega beach cycle race? What better way to spend a  quiet Sunday than cycling on sand for four and a half hours (and that’s the quick people).

We literally stumbled across this race as we decided to explore the small Dutch seaside town of Wijk ann zee. Like most Dutch resorts Wijk had already packed itself away for the winter. The beach restaurants have been dismantled, even most of the cafes in town were closed. But as we fought our way through the fog (and it was a VERY FOGGY DAY) to the beach we realised we had arrived in the middle of some major event. At first we thought the beach was the end of the race, as crowds had gathered, but then we were told this was only about half way – the race had started at the Hook of Holland at 9.00 am in the morning, and continued all the way up to Den Helder. The only reason we had passed cyclists on the road heading towards the beach was because the cyclists have to detour inland to cross the North Sea Canal.

It was had enough walking on the heavy sand of Wijk beach let alone cycling, and it did seem to be a particularly good place to stop and watch several tumbles as the cyclists hurtled down the dunes to continue racing along the tide-mark.

It was an unusually calm day. As the friendly Dutch observer who was explaining the race to us remarked, almost with a trace of disappointment in his voice, can you imagine how much tougher it can be in the wind?

Yes I could. Rather them than me.